Songs from The Beggar’s Opera: Air XVI-“Over the Hills, and Far Away”

John Gay 1685 – 1732



Mac.    Were I laid on Greenland’s coast,
               And in my arms embraced my lass,
          Warm amidst eternal frost,
               Too soon the half-year’s night would pass.
Polly. Were I sold on Indian soil,
               Soon as the burning day was closed,
          I could mock the sultry toil
               When on my charmer’s breast reposed.
Mac.    And I would love you all the day,
Polly. Every night would kiss and play,
Mac.    If with me you’d fondly stray
Polly. Over the hills, and far away.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

24 sec read
120

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCBDEDAFFFF
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 523
Words 83
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 12

John Gay

John Gay, a cousin of the poet John Gay, was an English philosopher, biblical scholar and Church of England clergyman. more…

All John Gay poems | John Gay Books

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    "Songs from The Beggar’s Opera: Air XVI-“Over the Hills, and Far Away”" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/22777/songs-from-the-beggar’s-opera:-air-xvi-“over-the-hills,-and-far-away”>.

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